Summary

This position is located within the Washington Office Fire and Aviation Management (WO-FAM) Operations program unit.

The incumbent assists the Branch Chief for Emergency Operations and International Fire Support in providing advice and support functions to the USDA, FEMA, and other cooperating agencies and countries on the operational management of the National Incident Management System (NIMS) and emergency response systems for wildfire and other natural resource disasters.

This job is open to

The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)

Federal employees whose job, agency or department was eliminated and are eligible for priority over other applicants.

Clarification from the agency

Applications will be accepted from any U.S. citizen. Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position. Veterans Preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants does not apply to this vacancy.

Duties

Duties listed are at full performance grade GW-13 level.
Identifies and secures professional fire and other disaster-related specialists in forestry and natural resources required to carry forth the USFS national and worldwide program of assistance in disaster preparedness and relief.
Provides USFS and FEMA with advice on fire and other natural resource disaster-related activities nationally and worldwide.
Identifies appropriate and other National Incident Management System (NIMS) and the National Response Framework (NRF) partners, personnel and relevant collaborators.
Provides interpretation of USDA FS programs, policies, and procedures; designs and develops multi-state or national exercise scenarios and serves as an evaluator.
Directs the conduct and completion of full scale, partial scale, and remedial exercises to determine state and local ability to implement respective emergency plans in response to an incident.
Provides direct technical assistance to FEMA, NIMS and NRF partners, Department of State, United States Embassies, and cooperating countries on the use of disaster management systems and development of management plans for future and other disasters.
Functions as a wildland fire management systems subject matter expert in the multi-jurisdictional, multi-disciplinary National Integration Center (NIC).
Provides advice to USFS, wildland fire agencies, FEMA and cooperating countries on fire and other disaster management training needs.
Develops training materials, delivers short-term training courses, and evaluates training and training materials as related to emergency operations management.
Work within the National Incident Management System (NIMS), Incident Command System (ICS), and the wildland fire systems to transfer technology and instruct interagency personnel in these applications.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service or exempt.
Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served. Refer to the Next Steps section for more information.
Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit E-Verify.
Must be 18 years of age.
This is a drug testing designated position. You will be subject to pre-employment and random drug testing. Appointment is based on a negative result. This announcement constitutes 30 days advance notice.
Secondary Coverage: Prior wildland firefighting experience is required.
Must possess and maintain a valid state driver's license.
Willing to live/work in remote locations (volatile/unpredictable).
Some Fire positions may have Conditions of Employment such as: a valid state driver's license; a commercial driver's license (CDL); pre-appointment and random drug testing; or a physical or medical examination.
There may be additional Conditions of Employment not listed here, however applicants will be notified of any specific requirements at the time a tentative job offer is made.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards.

Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education. Provide course descriptions as necessary.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Specialized Experience Requirement:

GW-12: You must have one year specialized experience equivalent to the GW-11 in the Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Worked independently with federal, state and/or local jurisdictions to develop emergency response policies, plans, and procedures; and/or Used emergency response guidelines such as the National Response Framework (NRF), and the National Incident Management systems (NIMS) or other similar guidelines; and/or Assisted in the mobilization and prioritization of government resources for disaster response, including personnel, specialized equipment/supplies, and other operational assets; and/or Assisted federal, state and local governments in assessing existing training programs and developing additional materials to address gaps in training. B. I do not meet the experience described above.

GW-13: You must have one year specialized experience equivalent to the GW-12 in the Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Planned, implemented and or developed studies and evaluations of emergency management programs; Developed detailed plans, goals and objectives for long range and tactical implementation of emergency management programs; Served as an agency-wide resource or consultant and having independently mobilized and prioritized government resources for disaster response, including personnel, specialized equipment/supplies, aircrafts, and other operational assets.

Selective Placement Factors

Must possess and maintain a valid state driver's license.

Top Secret Clearance with Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) Access will be required for this position.

FIREFIGHTER RETIREMENT COVERAGE: This is a secondary firefighter position under 5 USC 8336 (CSRS) and 8412(d) (FERS). Prior wildland firefighting experience is required. There is no age limit for entry into secondary positions. Firefighter retirement coverage of the incumbent depends upon his or her individual work history.

To receive consideration for this position, you must provide updated required documents and meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

There is no education qualification or substitution for this position.

Additional information

For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Gordon Sachs at gordon.sachs@usda.gov.

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors.

This is a permanent full-time position and may include weekend work.

The duty station for this position will be Washington, DC. Salary range as shown is the locality pay Washington-Baltimore-Arlington, DC-MD-VA-WV-PA (DCB). Please visit the Office of Personnel Management's website for additional information on pay rates.

Recruitment or Relocation Incentive may be authorized. Final determination to pay an incentive will be made by the hiring official at time of job offer.

The Forest Service may use certain incentives and hiring flexibilities, currently offered by the Federal government, to attract highly qualified candidates. Additional Information is available on the OPM Website.

PROMOTION POTENTIAL: If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied or guaranteed.

This is a non-bargaining unit position.

Forest Service daycare facilities and Government Housing are not available.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

This is a Direct-Hire Authority position, all applicants who meet the minimum qualifications, to include any selective placement factor(s), if applicable, will be referred to the selecting official. Before a certificate is issued to the selecting official, the resume is reviewed to ensure that you meet all the qualification requirements. A rating will not be used; veteran's preference does not apply due to the existence of the Direct Hire authority for this position.

Selections made under this authority will be processed as new appointments to the civil service. Current civil service employees would be given a new appointment.

Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, you may be found ineligible. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.

To view the application form, visit: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12908815

Required Documents

The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.

Resume that includes: Personal Information: name, address, contact information; Education; Work Experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; title, series, grade (if applicable); other qualifications. Resume cannot exceed 2 pages.

Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP, RPL, or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), current performance appraisal with rating of at least "Fully Successful" or equivalent, and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

How to Apply

Please view Tips for Applicants - a guide to the Forest Service application process.

Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.

Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (7:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Mountain Time Zone, Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement to be entered into the system prior to its closing. Resumes must not exceed two pages.

This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.

To begin, click "Apply" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.

Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBs transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Uploaded documents must be less than 5MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, TXT or Word (DOC or DOCX). Do not upload Adobe Portfolio documents because they are not viewable. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration. Please ensure your resume does not exceed two pages. Applicants who submit a resume that exceeds two pages will be removed from consideration.

Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, your system failure, etc.

Agency contact information

HRM Contact Center

Phone

1-877-372-7248 X2

HRM_Contact_Center@usda.gov

Address

USDA Forest Service HRM Contact Center
DO NOT MAIL IN APPLICATIONS, SEE INSTRUCTIONS IN THE ANNOUNCEMENT
Albuquerque, NM 87109
US

Next steps

Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS to check your application status.

We may select from this announcement or any other source to fill one or more vacancies.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Under the Fair Chance Act, agencies are not allowed to request information about an applicant's criminal history until a conditional offer of employment has been made, except as allowed for access to classified information; assignment to national security duties or positions; acceptance or retention in the armed forces; or recruitment of a Federal law enforcement officer. An applicant may submit a complaint, or any other information related to an organization's alleged noncompliance with the Fair Chance Act. The complaint must be submitted within 30 calendar days of the date of the alleged noncompliance. To make a Fair Chance Act inquiry or complaint, send an email with the appropriate information to sm.fs.hrm_elr@usda.gov, subject line: Fair Chance Act.

Overview

Accepting applications

Open & closing dates

03/16/2026 to 03/30/2026

Salary

$111,632 to - $167,821 per year

Pay scale & grade

GW 12 - 13

Location

Washington, DC

1 vacancy

Remote job

Telework eligible

Yes—Situational/Limited determined by the agency policy.

Travel Required

Occasional travel - Occasional travel may be required for fire related assignments and leadership trainings.

Relocation expenses reimbursed

Yes—You may qualify for reimbursement of relocation expenses in accordance with agency policy.

Appointment type

Permanent

Work schedule

Full-time

Service

Competitive

Promotion potential

Job family (Series)

0301 Miscellaneous Administration And Program

Supervisory status

Security clearance

Sensitive Compartmented Information

Drug test

Yes

Position sensitivity and risk

Special-Sensitive (SS)/High Risk

Trust determination process

Credentialing
National security

Financial disclosure

Bargaining unit status

Announcement number

26-FIRE-WO-12908815-1213DH

Control number

861240800

US Forest Service

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